[Python-Dev] PEP 476: Enabling certificate validation by default!

[Antoine Pitrou]

On Wed, 3 Sep 2014 10:54:55 -0700
Guido van Rossum <guido at python.org> wrote:
> 
> Let's take the plunge on this issue for the next 2.7 release (3.5 being a
> done deal).

I'm entirely against this.

> Yes, some people will find that they have an old script
> accessing an old service which breaks. Surely some of the other changes in
> the same 2.7 bugfix release will also break some other scripts. People deal
> with it. Probably 90% of the time it's an annoyance (but no worse than any
> other minor-release upgrade -- you should test upgrades before committing
> to them, and if all else fails, roll it back).

Python is routinely updated to bugfix releases by Linux distributions
and other distribution channels, you usually have no say over what's
shipped in those updates. This is not like changing the major version
used for executing the script, which is normally a manual change.

> Today (working at Dropbox, a much smaller company!) I don't
> even remember the last time I had to deal with such a browser
> complaint -- internal services here all redirect to SSL, and not a
> browser that can find fault with their certs.

Good for you. I still sometimes get warnings about expired certificates
- and sometimes ones that don't exactly match the domain being
fetched (for example, the certificate wouldn't be valid for that
specific subdomain - note that CAs often charge a premium for multiple
subdomains, which why small or non-profit Web sites sometimes skimp on
them).

You shouldn't assume that the experience of well-connected people in
the Silicon Valley is representative of what people over the world
encounter. Yes, where there's a lot of money and a lot of accumulated
domain competence, security procedures are updated and followed more
scrupulously...

> But at least some of the
> time it will be a wake-up call and an expired certificate will be replaced,
> resulting in more security for all.

Only if you are actually the one managing that certificate and the
machine it's installed one...

Regards

Antoine.